Pak wants to assess Indian water projects

February 10, 2010 16:46 IST

Pakistan has asked India to provide details of all ongoing water projects on the Indus river in the Kashmir region and allow its officials to inspect the sites.

Pakistan has been opposing the construction of the Kishanganga hydropower project on Ganga river in Kashmir, which is called Neelum upon entering Pakistan. Pakistan has said that the diversion of the waters of the Neelum is not allowed under the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, and that it will face a 27 per cent water deficit when the project gets completed.

The reduced water flow in the Neelum would not yield the required results of the proposed $1.6 billion Neelum-Jehlum hydropower project that has been designed to generate 969 MW of electricity.

It has said that India has almost completed a 22-kilometre long tunnel to divert Kishanganga waters to Wullar Lake in Jammu and Kashmir.

Meanwhile, a three-member Indian team of Permanent Commission on Indus Waters (PCIW) headed by Auranga Nathan inspected the Sutlej, the Ravi and the Bias river sites over which New Delhi has exclusive rights.

Nathan and his Pakistani counterpart Syed Jamaat Ali Shah are likely to sign the inspected record of the barrages on Wednesday.